Leading up to game 1 of round 1 of the 2015-2016 NBA Playoffs, I had some mixed feelings for sure. I bought tickets to the first two games with the intentions of graphing the Thunder, thinking that the Portland Trail Blazers would be our opponent. Things happened and then it was going to be the Memphis Grizzlies. Okay, fine, Marc Gasol and Mike Conley are out, so the plan should still be good to go. Then more things happened and our first round foe turned into my other favorite team, the Dallas Mavericks. I CAN'T GRAPH THE HOME TEAM WHEN WE'RE PLAYING DALLAS!!! My favorite player in all of the league is Dirk Nowitzki, who skipped signing for my side back in the November game. Do you see the problem here? We can't be ThunderGraphs without getting some Thunder 'graphs. But I digress. I was both happy and a little disappointed with our opponent draw, but I'll make it work somehow. Arriving at the game, parking was terrible. There were multiple events going on that same night, a Joyce Meyer conference and allegedly, a Justin Bieber concert. I actually had to pay for parking and if you know me, I avoid that whenever possible! I actually wasted an extra 10-15 minutes trying to find a parking spot before giving up and paying $10. Still way out in the boonies and expensive to boot. There were giant crowds outside the arena because they've got the whole Thunder Alley thing set up now, but surprisingly, the lines weren't bad. Oddly enough, there were NO Dallas fans in line, even when more and more fans started showing up. No one was wearing anything Maverick-related, except me (Go Dirk!), so I felt just a little bit weird -- but only for a little bit, because I thought, if this shirt is the difference between me and a few extra Maverick autographs, it'll be worth it. Here's a n00b tip: if you're graphing the opposing team, wear neutral colors or the opposing team's gear. You may be more likely to get the autograph. Side note: if a player doesn't like to sign, such as LeBron James, it won't matter what colors/team you're wearing. My goal for this game was to try for Dirk Nowitzki again, but keeping my expectations in check. That's another tip for n00bs: don't get your hopes up too high that you miss out on the other guys that are right in front of you willing to sign. Remember there are other people in the world who love autographs but don't have the same opportunities that you do. I made sure to stand on the side that Dirk signed for at the last game I attended so that I (hopefully) wouldn't get skipped this time. I got a spot on the second row, right by "the turn", which was a pretty good spot although not optimal. There wasn't anyone behind me asking for autographs either, so it was very easy for some of the players to just sign for the front row and then walk off. To my surprise, the first person I saw was Mark Cuban. Yeah, the billionaire who owns the Dallas Mavericks. I'd never seen him in person before (he wasn't at the November game as far as I could tell), so I didn't bother printing out a photo for him. I regretted that, but he was a nice guy nonetheless. The guys in the front row were calling out to him, but Mark could see that I was trapped behind them and pointed at me and said he would come around to the side to sign for me. What a great guy! I wish I had a bit more courage to yell out to him to get a picture with him at that moment. He was a bit far away for me to politely ask, and you know, it's an arena so it's loud. You gotta yell. I mustered up enough courage to do it when he came around the second time, but he only had enough time to pose with the kid in front of me (who had camera trouble) before telling me he had to go. I'd be more disappointed if it weren't my fault AND if I weren't already going to the Mavs game on Monday. Bully! The next guy I saw, I made sure he signed for me because I let him pass me by last November -- Zaza Pachulia. He signed a nice one for me in my new bronze Sharpie, which turned out really, really nice. It pops almost as much as a paint pen and without the potential for smearing. I asked him if I could get a picture with him, and it appeared that he didn't understand my question at first, but quickly figured it out. The pic didn't take but there was no older lady at fault this time, only me. I just got a new camera so I'm still learning how to use it. It turns out, I needed to have the flash part popped out. It doesn't automatically pop out. That part sucks about the design, but the only real pro to it is that the view pops up and flips over 180 degrees so you can see yourself while taking the picture. It's great for selfies, if I can only figure out how to use it. I'm not so bummed it didn't take, because I learned what to do when Dirk came by. Keep that puppy popped! Salah Mejri was next, and I thought that's who he was, but I wasn't 100% so I didn't want to call out "Salah!" when it might not be. It was though, and he was about to walk away but I held out my logo photo for him and he signed it for me, adding his #50, and walked away. Nice guy! Justin Anderson was next and he signed for a few people in the front row and on the other side, but when he got to "the turn" he said he had to go and that he would "sign after." No offense man, but if I get Dirk, I'm not waiting after the game for you. Charlie Villanueva was one guy I didn't get back in November because I arrived too late, but he signed for quite a few people, even giving his headband away to a fan, but when he was about to get to "the turn", a reporter-type lady stopped him, showed him something on her phone, and he picked it up like he was going to talk into it. I didn't get his autograph. I'm not even sure if that was poor timing or if he was done signing anyway, but that felt a little weird to me. I'll try him again on Monday but I won't be bummed if I get skunked again. Dwight Powell signed one for me, and J.J. Barea said he would sign for people after shootaround but stopped right before me at the turn. One thing of note, J.J. is listed at 6'0" but there is no way that's right. He looked very short to me, maybe about 5'8", even when he was on the court. I guess everyone exaggerates to an extent, but at least make it look believable. My boy Dirk Nowitzki was next, and I was worried he would skip me again or stop before getting to me, but God is good all the time and Dirk signed my swingman! I ordered the jersey from FansEdge on Thursday morning with a 20% off playoffs discount, and it was on my doorstep on Friday afternoon! It was all worth it. Eat that, Google reviews! I tried to get a picture of him signing for me but Dirk moves too fast and my camera does not. But we'll chalk that one up to user error. Chandler Parsons made a surprise appearance (I knew he was hurt and not expected to play), and even though injured players travel with the team, I hadn't seen any actually show up or come out to sign during the regular season (Joakim Noah, Blake Griffin, anyone?) A random guy appeared behind me and helped me out, he offered to hold my JaVale McGee photo while I looked for one for Chandler because they were both coming off at the same time. He said "I'll call out to him for you, real loud." "You gotta distract him, get his attention. I saw him at a bar [somewhere] and asked him about that." He asked me if JJ Barea had come out. Yup. HE LOOKS AT ME IN MOCK SHOCK. "He gave me tickets to this game!" Nice guy, where was he earlier? Too bad my gold Sharpie wasn't primed and it came out really light. Who knew Sharpies had to be primed? Oh well, live and learn. JaVale McGee came out right behind Parsons. He gave a nice bold signature for me and everyone else waiting. Even though I bought my first Prisma paint pens back in January before the Grizzlies game, I'd never actually used it in an autographing scenario fearing it would splatter all over the place or spit out all of its contents and ruin my item. For Raymond Felton, I'd gotten him before so I figured it would be okay if it didn't turn out all right. It came out looking a lot like the silver Staedtler that I had him use back in November, but the difference is, if you bend the photo in the light, you can see it pop a lot more. It streaked a bit even though I tested it multiple times while I was waiting for Dirk, but I guess if you are a fast signer that will happen regardless of the pen you use. Wesley Matthews was the last guy on the court and I won't say he pulled a Novak, he just timed it that way. I got my first NBA player high-five/fist bump from him. I held out my hand for a high five, his hand was in position for a fist bump. Contact was made and the first high-five/fist bump was born. Anderson 0/1 Barea 0/1 Cuban 1/1 Felton 1/1 Matthews 0/1 + high-five/fist bump McGee 1/1 Mejri 1/1 Nowitzki 1/1 Pachulia 1/1 - failed selfie, needed my "optional" flash to be popped up Parsons 1/1 - who knew Sharpies needed to be primed? Powell 1/1 Villanueva 0/1 The eight autographs I obtained tonight ties my record for most autographs in a single game this season, set when I graphed the Thunder in a December game vs. the Portland Trail Blazers. I have tickets to Game 2 against the Mavs on Monday. I'm hoping the real Mavs will show up and give the Thunder a run for their money, maybe even winning one or two to force a Game 5 or 7 so I can try to get a pic with Dirk. Hopefully the Thunder make it to the next round to face off against the Spurs; I need to get some Thunder 'graphs! Until next time, J.R.
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This wraps up my in-person graphing for the regular season (2015-16). Don't worry folks, I'm not done yet. I'll be going to a couple of post-season games if not more, and there will be more posts for you to devour. Since the regular season is done, I'll take a moment or two of your time to highlight some of the best items I've gotten this year, and some of the worst experiences as well. Without further ado: Top 10 Best Signatures This award is not based on the quality of the signature alone; it factors in the player's star power, personality (nice or not), and my own personal opinions of said player. Luck plays a significant role in this as well; some names are not "big" names but I considered myself lucky I got him, given the circumstances of the encounter. This is also my blog and awards list, so anything goes. 1. Stephen Curry (GSW) 2. Kevin Durant (OKC) 3. John Wall (WAS) 4. Chris Paul (LAC) 5. Damian Lillard (POR) 6. Serge Ibaka (OKC) 7. Marc Gasol (MEM) 8. Nikola Vucevic (ORL) 9. Zach LaVine (MIN) 10. Chandler Parsons (DAL)
This award is based solely on the appearance and quality of the signature; it does not take into consideration any individual factor of the player. 1. Nemanja Bjelica (MIN) 2. Kevin Martin (SAS) 3. Marreese Speights (GSW) 4. Ramon Sessions (WAS) 5. Gorgui Dieng (MIN) 6. Jeff Green (LAC) 7. Channing Frye (ORL) 8. C.J. Watson (ORL) 9. DeAndre Jordan (LAC) 10. Zach LaVine (MIN) Coolest SignaturesThis award goes to the players whose signatures just flat out look cool or were very neatly penned. All signatures were obtained at the game (no paid signings/"sit-downs"). 1. Damian Lillard (POR) 2. Stephen Curry (GSW) 3. Nick Collison (OKC) 4. Cameron Payne (OKC) 5. John Wall (WAS) 6. Serge Ibaka (OKC) Nicest EncountersThese players/coaches were the nicest people I've interacted with this season. The award is based on one or more encounters, most often just a single encounter. Your experience may vary. 1. Stephen Curry (GSW) 2. Kevin Durant (OKC) 3. Nikola Vucevic (ORL) 4. Nick Collison (OKC) 5. Mario Elie (ORL) Worst Encounters These players are talented on the court and may have a good personality/rapport with the press, but they intentionally didn't sign for me despite signing for others directly around me. I am still a fan of them (except maybe Austin Rivers) and will be attempting them next season, in which hopefully they will not show up on this list again. 1. Austin Rivers (LAC) 2. Derrick Rose (CHI) 3. Jimmy Butler (CHI) Top 12 Current NBA Personalities I Want to Meet1. LeBron James
2. Dirk Nowitzki 3. Derrick Rose 4. Tim Duncan 5. Jason Kidd 6. Dwyane Wade 7. DeMarcus Cousins 8. Blake Griffin 9. Russell Westbrook 10. Jimmy Butler 11. Kevin Love 12. Kyrie Irving This was the Los Angeles Lakers game, AKA the last stop in the farewell tour for the legendary Kobe Bryant. It was a great game and there was a ridiculously large crowd as expected. There was basically nobody on the Thunder side. I could have given up midway or even 3/4 of the way in and still gotten a decent spot on the home side of the court. It was THAT bad. Kevin Durant was out and I believe Serge Ibaka was too, but I saw some of the graphs KD was handing out and they were flat out ugly. I don't regret not going over there. Not much, anyway. I'll spare you all the boredom -- no one signed. It was worse than the Cavaliers game. At least some of those guys attempted high fives. I saw D'Angelo Russell, assistant coach Mark Madsen, Roy Hibbert, Tarik Black, Lou Williams, Metta World Peace, Jordan Clarkson, Marcelo Huertas, but no Kobe Bryant. Clarkson and Williams were supposed to be gimmes based on previous reports, but tonight it was terrible. I'll be honest, I saw Ty (on 101)'s post and got excited about the prospect of Kobe signing, but it was not to be. I had become that delusional fan. Same as those who wanted LeBron. I had drunk the proverbial Kool-Aid, but I lived to tell the tale and I know better now. On the bright side, graphing the Lakers should be pretty easy from here on out, right? At least, the crowds will be smaller. A detailed break-down on the signatures I got:
Black 0/1 Clarkson 0/1 Hibbert 0/1 Huertas 0/1 Russell 0/1 Williams 0/1 World Peace 0/1 So even though you didn't come out to sign for us, thank you Black Mamba for a great 20 years. Whatever you do, we wish you nothing but the best. We'll miss you! ThunderGraphs closes out the regular season with 55 autographs on 51 different items (50 photos and 1 jersey). Depending on the schedule, I will likely attend 1 or 2 playoff games against the Memphis Grizzlies. If Marc Gasol and Mike Conley were healthy, I would seriously consider graphing them. As it stands now, I plan to get some Thunder selfies and I really would like KD to sign the jersey I've been wearing since the Memphis game back in January. Until next time, J.R. This was probably the most up-and-down graphing event to date, or at least so it seems. I met a guy outside who was from Atlanta who was looking for info (what side to stand on for the Thunder). We chatted a bit about graphing habits and you know it's for real when you are both on 101! He was looking to get Collison and hoping to have him sign his jersey and/or selfie that he printed out (I later learned his name was Zach). To start things off, I got the idea from Josh (from 101) and Shane to take a peek at the Thunder side to get KD if he was out and then quickly run to the opposing team's side to graph everyone else. Going in, I knew that Tony Parker and Tim Duncan would be resting (and therefore not playing tonight). Kawhi Leonard was hurt, so the best I could hope for was a Manu Ginobili. I looked out on the court and saw what looked like KD from behind so I got excited and decided to wait it out. On the Spurs side, only Kyle Anderson was out and I figured it would be safe to wait for KD. It turned out that it wasn't actually KD but Serge Ibaka, and to be fair, I only identified him from behind (how many other guys are that tall and look similar from behind?) He comes off rather quickly and I'm scrambling, but he signs for the guy in front of me who rips off his sunset jersey for him to sign. I wait for him to get to me next so I can ask him for a pic, but he goes to the other side and doesn't quite come back. He loops around after getting the opposite side, but stops a few people short of coming back to me and another opportunity is lost. I scan the court again and I think it's only Nazr Mohammed out there so I rush back to the Spurs side and find a decent, but not prime spot. Kyle Anderson is coming off now so I'm scrambling again, but by the time I pull his photo out, he's long gone. Rats! Kevin Martin came by next and signed one for everyone although his signature is pretty much chicken scratch. Behind Nemanja Bjelica, Martin's signature leaves much to be desired. I can't complain though, I kind of like him as a player. A lady in a Spurs jacket came by next and I guess people recognized her because she stopped to sign for people. The older lady behind me recognized my deer-in-the-headlights look and told me it was the "lady coach," the first female coach in the NBA (Becky Hammon). Okay, cool, a free autograph, why not? She signed all the Spurs stuff that people presented, but I noticed she skipped the kid to my right who only had a program (also, no pen). Did she skip him because of the lack of pen, or that he was holding a program? Remember my shoot-around question (#1)? Here's another piece of damning evidence for the casebook. I was wondering when it would happen again considering it had been a while, but Anthony Morrow stopped by and signed for us. I thought about asking him for a pic, but the angle I was standing at was weird (and I hadn't yet thought about crouching down to adjust that angle discrepancy). I also didn't really want to ask the Asian girl to my left to do it for me, though in retrospect she may have been a better option than the older lady behind me that I did end up asking. Speaking of Asian girls, or Asian fans in general, there were a crap ton of them there. There are no Asian Spurs players so far as I can tell, so I really don't know how to explain it. The girl also kept asking me (pointing to pictures in the program) if the player signing was the one she was pointing to. She was probably from out of town. Nick Collison came by next, and honestly I was thinking to myself, I wanted to mentally will Collison to come by our side (since every so often the Thunder are actually shooting on the visitor's side of the court, as they were today). He must have felt my Jedi powers because he did come by (and I secretly felt bad for Zach!) Karma was not kind to me however, and I really should have held out a photo so that I wouldn't go away empty-handed. Collison was nice enough to oblige my request for a pic, but the older lady didn't know how to use my camera (push the button hard, and hold it until you hear the shutter) and the photo didn't take! I'm definitely going to buy playoff tickets now, if only to graph the Thunder and get some selfies. Also, it's probably time to buy a new camera. Nothing wrong with my current one, it's just not bueno for taking selfies. Am I even in focus? Is the angle right? I can't tell. My iPhone (4!!!) is so old that the app loads slowly and the picture quality is meh. I don't want to bring a guest anymore, but I also don't want to ask a stranger to take my pic again. Even though she was kind enough to take pics on her phone and let me email them to myself, some of them didn't come out very well. The whole bottom of my face is cut off on one of them! I knew Boris Diaw would be super nice so I decided to ask him for a pic in addition to him signing my photo. I also didn't want a repeat of what happened with Collison (getting nothing). This is the selfie that is missing the bottom of my face. Oh well! David West was next and he came off about the same time as Patty Mills (I mean, one right behind the other) so I had both of my photos out, one on each side of my foam board. David was seriously looking like he would skip me, and given his questionable signing habits, he might have, had the kid next to me actually had a pen. David had stepped from the girls to my left directly to the kid to my right. Realizing the kid didnt have a Sharpie, he saw mine and signed it first before signing for the kid, using my pen. Score one for me! Every so often it pays off when the kids don't have a Sharpie and you're sandwiched in between them! Patty Mills was next and signed one for everyone. I'm glad he used my gold Staedtler, because the photo I printed for him was pretty nice but was really dark. Andre Miller was last but he didn't sign for anyone. He didn't have to because he ran out of time and I think he might have pulled a Novak anyway if we hadn't gotten kicked out of the section due to time constraints. Anderson 0/1 Collison 0/0 tried for a selfie but not his fault the pic didn't take Diaw 1/1 + half selfie Hammon 1/1 Ibaka 0/1 Miller 0/1 Mills 1/1 Morrow 1/1 West 1/1 All in all, this was not a bad game but there were things about it that could have gone better. Not having any of the big name players come out puts a damper on the whole outing, but I'll take that over them coming out and declining or skipping me any day. The next game on the docket is the Lakers game next month. There is sure to be a gigantic crowd so I won't be attempting the Thunder because I need to secure a good spot to wait for Kobe to not come out. If he signs, I'd be surprised, but I'm tempering my expectations as usual. Until next time, J.R. There aren't too many people attempting to graph the Portland Trail Blazers tonight so there were plenty of spots to graph from and I got front row again. The lack of people was odd considering there was a decent-sized line outside waiting to come in, but I assume they were either going for the home team or to get food. Kevin Durant signed on the other side which was great for those guys. I might try going down to the Thunder side upon arrival to see if any big-name players are out, but not for a big-name opponent. I believe Durant signed for me at the last Portland home game as well. Damian Lillard was already out on the court when I got there, but the first guy to walk past was Meyers Leonard and it was just me, Charlie, and Pocky. He signed for all of us (one per, he said), in the marker of our choosing and went on his way. After he finished practicing, he came out and signed for Josh (Meyers asked him what his name was: "Hey Meyers, can you sign one for me?" "Sure, what's your name?") and walked off. He didn't sign for anyone else as far as I could tell -- the side I used to go on was skipped over completely. After Meyers signed, there was an extremely long lull in signing. Shane was over on the Thunder side and was texting me that he got Anthony Morrow and Randy Foye after Durant. I started worrying that this would be all I would get. Lillard finished practicing but sat down on the bench to chat for what seemed like an eternity. My fellow graphers were concerned they'd all come off the court at once and skip everyone. Chris Kaman and Damian Lillard both came off the court at almost the exact same time. Fortunately I always carry two foam boards, so I had one in each hand and ready to go. I knew Kaman probably wouldn't sign based on the reports I heard from his last visit through town (he quit signing), but when he picked up a Sharpie to sign for Charlie I got a little bit excited. He skipped everyone else but he may have signed for a few more kids down the line on the other side as he walked down. It's a shame that Kaman only signs for kids -- adults can be fans, too! Lillard was much nicer and signed for everyone. He seemed to be in a good mood and answered questions about his music and whether he'd be cutting a new track soon. Not yet, but if you haven't heard "Soldier of the Game," check it out! Maurice Harkless was the only player that ran off and didn't sign for anyone. He seemed to be in a big hurry but he definitely had enough time to sign for all of us waiting for him. Al-Farouq Aminu and Gerald Henderson were the last two guys on the court and I knew Henderson would be hard to get based on what the other guys around me were saying. I also didn't have anything for him, save my team logo photo. As expected, Aminu was the only one of the pair to sign, but he only signed autographs and declined photo ops. Aminu 1/1 Harkless 0/1 Henderson 0/1 Kaman 0/1 Leonard 1/1 Lillard 1/1 Plumlee 0/1 This was a mixed-bag game for sure. I was pleasantly surprised to get Lillard, but there were a lot of smaller-name players who don't sign. I don't know if I'd graph Portland again (okay, maybe once or twice for Lillard). As I told Shane, any time the Trail Blazers are in town, I'd probably graph the Thunder. I was able to snag a cheap ticket from the venue! for the Lakers game, so I'll be attempting to get Kobe (but half the state will probably be there). Only two games left in the season for me, the next being the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday. I'm not sure if Tim Duncan will be healthy/playing, but his 'graph is the one I want most, followed by Tony Parker. I bought a swingman for Parker off eBay and hopefully it'll be here before the game. I've also finally purchased a shadowbox frame for my Steph Curry jersey so I'll be posting that when it's here and done. Until next time, J.R. Heads up, fair warning: although this is a family-friendly blog, this entry is rated PG-13 for mild, possibly vulgar language. Proceed at your own risk. Surprisingly, the grapher turnout was low at the Minnesota Timberwolves game and there wasn't really any pushing except n00bs trying to get whichever player happened to walk by. I suspect it was because the T-Wolves have already come to town this season, but some of the usual hounds were in attendance. Again, some of the newer graphers game unprepared, notably the father/son who I saw in line at the Clippers game. I kind of give this one a pass, even though it's frowned upon to graph unprepared -- only because the dad was nice about it and not at all pushy (physically or verbally) about borrowing my Sharpie. Upon arrival, the first thing I do after staking out a position is to see who's out on the court and pull out their photos from my portfolio. I've started using an art portfolio to hold my photos now. This is something I started doing since the last game versus the Clippers and it's been working all right so far. The folder is lighter and less obnoxious than the Priority Mail envelopes I've been using. It also looks nicer and makes me look less like a dealer, I think. The plastic sleeves are a nice touch and add extra protection from the elements, something the PM envelopes were lacking. I had another n00b moment tonight, which reminded me that although I have logged quite a few hours of in-person graphing, even the best of us can have a n00b moment. When I first arrived, Nemanja Bjelica, Zach LaVine, Andrew Wiggins, and a fourth player were practicing on the court. I didn't know who that fourth player was. Neither did the guys around me. They thought he was Adreian Payne, but to myself, I didn't think so. Payne is bald but this guy wasn't. Someone else said it was Gorgui Dieng -- it wasn't because he came out later (spoiler alert)! Right now I'm still not sure who he was, but if I had to guess it was probably Greg Smith. If you're thinking, "who?" then you and I are in the same boat. An honest mistake for sure. I didn't get anything from him but I'm pretty sure he would have skipped me considering he only signed one and I had Dieng's photo out. Thanks for not embarrassing me! I love this section I graph from. It's so much better than the old one. And although tonight I was in the prime spot (front row) again, getting videos is tough (as discussed in the last blog entry). Most notably, the video I got of Bjelica featured a very prominent, very obvious, ball scratch. Yeah, that's right -- I got a video of Nemanja Bjelica scratching his balls. He did sign for everyone there, but his autograph leaves a lot to be desired. When Zach LaVine was practicing his shots, the young mom behind me asked a neighbor, "Who's LaVine? Is he the white guy?" No, the "white guy" is Bjelica. Did she really just say that? SMH. Based on LaVine's current star trajectory (though he's not peaked yet), I wasn't sure if he would sign. I heard he can be hit or miss, that he prefers not to sign, and at the All-Star break, he only signed when his mom was around to make him. Yesterday was his 21st birthday and he appeared to be in a good mood tonight. He signed my sweet shot of him slow-mo dunking. Great times were had by all! Tayshaun Prince signed for everyone except the kid and his dad on my left because they were fumbling with their cards. Ricky Rubio looked like he would do the same, but ended up skipping my side of the stands. I really think that dealer-looking guy that I hereby dub "Pocky" had the best position to graph from, which is right at the corner where the player has to turn (and in doing so, may make incidental eye contact). I do believe he got Rubio. Somewhere between Prince and Rubio, we noticed Andrew Wiggins had disappeared, presumably through another tunnel (not the home side). The real Gorgui Dieng appeared and signed for everyone, but Shabazz Muhammad skipped my side of the stands. To be fair, Shabazz was the last guy off the court and didn't have time to get to me (though the question remains if he actually would sign if given the time). I don't comment much on the games (there are other blogs that do it better), but I do want to say a couple things. First off, I've gained so much more respect for Enes Kanter tonight. He played defense, tipped in some shots, and had an all-around good game. Why doesn't he get more minutes? And secondly, why does Kyle Singler get to play so much? I mean seriously, take a shot every time he fouls. Bjelica 1/1 Dieng 1/1 Lavine 1/1 Muhammad 0/1 Prince 1/1 Rubio 0/1 Smith? 0/1 Wiggins 0/1 Overall, this was not a bad game graph-wise though I've had better. There are only two scheduled games left for me, the next being the Trail Blazers game on Monday. I am watching Lakers ticket prices and they are over $100 each. It doesn't seem like I'll be able to go to that one considering the price and that the only guys who would sign are Lou Williams, Anthony Brown, and Jordan Clarkson. Of course there will be a giant crowd waiting for Kobe Bryant because that will be his last game in Thunder Town, but I'll keep it real and say he probably won't come out and sign. Until next time, J.R. I wasn't sure what to expect from the game against the Los Angeles Clippers. With Blake Griffin out because of a broken hand (Google it for more info), I didn't expect him to be out at the shootaround much less in the arena. I either hadn't been to a game in a while or just had a massive brain fart, but I couldn't remember the optimal time for game arrival. I ended up arriving at 6:15 or so, for a 7:00 door opening. Surprisingly, there weren't that many people there (just the graphers and a few first-timers), but upon closer inspection of the graphers, most of them looked like they were kids headed for the Thunder side. Really? I saw this at the Warriors game too. Unless it's your first (or first few times), why wouldn't you graph the opposing team? It was rows deep on the Thunder side once I got settled, and if I had to guess, it was probably to welcome old-new Thunder player Nazr Mohammed. Once inside, the players came off in rapid-fire succession and absolutely signed up a storm. The first couple of players were in and out in ten minutes (7:10pm) -- Jamal Crawford and Chris Paul. I sort of felt sorry, if only for a little bit, for the people who arrived late due to circumstances beyond their control and missed Chris Paul. The first guy to sign was Crawford and some guys behind me got skipped early on but when one of them yelled out that it was his buddy's birthday, Crawford stopped and came back. I don't know if it really was his birthday or if this strategy would fly with a bigger-name star, but it might be something to file away in my back pocket. I had a prime spot this time, same as at the Magic game. Getting videos is harder because the camera is much more obvious than when you're standing up high on the opposite section, so I've taken to setting it down on the surface directly in front of the guard rail. It provides a decent view if the player is on the opposite side, but once he gets to your side you get basically, well, a crotch video. No bueno. But at least you're less likely to get skipped, right? During this entire experience, I don't think we saw any players come out from the tunnel; rather, we just saw them magically appear on the court. Yes, I do realize there are multiple entrances, but it seemed like all the players did that tonight. At least they knew which tunnel to go down in order to get back to the locker room? DeAndre Jordan, Wesley Johnson, and Jeff Green came out at different times and signed, in that order. They were all really nice about it, even Green, who blew everyone off at the Grizzlies game back in January. Sam Cassell, who is known for being a strict 1per, signed for a few people up front on the opposite side before walking away. Someone from my side of the stands called out to him, and he stopped for a second to look back, but ultimately kept on walking. Boo! The biggest surprise of the night, was when Austin Rivers skipped me. He signed tickets (pieces of paper tickets) and programs for the other people directly around me but wouldn't sign my photo. I've never had that kind of experience before. Usually there is no comment or expression, just a quick move down the line passing me, e.g. Derrick Rose or Jimmy Butler. Austin looked at it, kind of pointed at it, and said he wouldn't sign it. I don't know what it was about it that he didn't like. It was a New Orleans Pelicans photo, similar to the other items you've seen me get signed. It wasn't like it was a shot of him getting scored on. As tempting as it is to bad mouth him for not signing, I realize people do have their off days, and this could be one of them. I'll try him again next time but I may bring something else just in case. Cassell 0/1 Crawford 1/1 Green 1/1 Johnson 1/1 Jordan 1/1 Paul 1/1 Rivers 0/1 Overall, this was surprisingly a good signing team. Save Rivers, who would have signed had I presented something else, everyone who came out signed. I don't get much of a break as the next game is Friday against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Such is the life of a grapher! I'd like to get Rubio but I'd settle for back-to-back Slam Dunk champ Zach LaVine. Until next time, J.R. Having been burned before in the past, most recently by the Cleveland Cavaliers, I went into the Warriors game with tempered expectations. One, I don't expect us to win. When your opponent has played 60+ games and only lost 5 of them, your chances aren't good. Given the way we played against Cleveland, I figured we wouldn't be #6 on their list of losses. Two, I don't expect to get Stephen Curry's autograph. I really want one, and he has a reputation for being a good signer despite his star status, much like Kevin Durant, but given the demand, I could understand if he decided to pass us all. I had to work this afternoon even though it was my usual day off. I went straight from work to the game, but arrived at 4:45 for a door opening of 6:00pm. The line at that point was longer than I thought, but I still got a good position in line. Had it been a true day off for me, I would have been much, much farther in the back of the line had I arrived at the time I had planned. Yay forwork. I got in to the arena and headed for my new usual spot where the kids stand. It seemed like a sub-optimal spot as it was similar to where I stood for the Cavs, but I knew it was pretty high up from the ground from the Cavs game and missing all those high fives, so I knew that once the players walked by, I had to crouch down and really position my items as low as possible. Once the crowd arrived, and it didn't take long, they really got aggressive once Stephen Curry finished his rather impressive warm-up routine. I had three items for Steph, 2 photos and a jersey. The jersey I prepped last night on a lark (rubber banded to two pieces of cardboard), thinking well, why not? I spent $75-80 on that Swingman after coupons, I should at least try, right? I decided to only hold out my jersey and it turned out to be a good decision. I nearly got trampled in the process, and my Klay Thompson photo was wrinkled/bent in the chaos, but I GOT STEPHEN CURRY'S AUTOGRAPH! It was very nicely done considering it was pretty taut and held open to the numbers on the back of the jersey. He gave a nice, FULL, well-placed black Sharpie signature in between the zero of the 30. Even though it wasn't in the best position (on the number is best) or in the best marker (paint pens trump Sharpies), it looks so much better than the autographs I've seen signed on the number. I consider myself very lucky and blessed! I heard quite a few of the people around me got skipped! Skipped! Usually when I say that word, it's me getting skipped and not the others. I don't know what kind of items they were presenting, but I saw quite a few programs, jerseys, and a small number of shoes. I've learned something today -- presenting a jersey (or some other item of value) seems to have slightly better results (though if a player doesn't like signing, it doesn't matter what you have). It seems counterintuitive, because if you're a dealer, you could get more money for the big ticket items versus the photos or cards. In any regard, the concept is like diecasts in NASCAR; the drivers know you spent a bit more money on it (versus a $1-5 photo) and that you're at least somewhat dedicated to them, so they're more likely to sign for you. Knowing this, I'm still not going to drop money on Swingmans for players I don't care much about. What do you know, the logic fits! The next guy to come out is wearing a hoodie. No one knows who he is. I don't know why anyone would do that -- we know you're a Golden State player, you're walking out onto the court, you can't hide from us. As he warms up, his hoodie slowly falls off to reveal Andre Iguodala.
Also out shortly thereafter is Andrew Bogut. After hearing the all the drama about Bogut not signing for people he believes to be dealers, I don't have high expectations for him. Neither player ends up signing, though because I'm crouched down low, I don't know if either guy ended up signing for a few before abandoning the rest of us. Klay Thompson, Brandon Rush, Marreese Speights, and one other player (who I wasn't sure who he was, possibly Leandro Barbosa) come out in relatively short succession, but Thompson and the unknown player run by us all and from what I could tell, didn't sign for anyone. Brandon Rush lived up to his name and gives us all a "Rush"-ed signature. I held out two photos for Speights but he only signed one. Oh well, that was my first attempt at trying for more than one and I'll have to do more experimenting to find out how to optimize those results. On a slightly unrelated note, who goes to games trying to get autographs but doesn't bring a Sharpie? Who does that? Bogut 0/1 Curry 1/1 Iguodala 0/1 Rush 1/1 Speights 1/2 Thompson 0/1 Thanks @stephencurry for making my day and putting on a good show. As a Thunder fan first, I'd probably be tarred and feathered by my brethren in orange and blue for saying this. But as a basketball fan, I think we all can agree that what we are witnessing is history in the making -- Stephen Curry is a once-in-a-generation talent and we all secretly wish he played for our team. I'll be hitting up three more home games in a row, so the next game on the docket is the Los Angeles Clippers on March 9th. Doubtful Blake Griffin will be out signing or even in the arena, but I can hope for a Chris Paul, right? Until next time, J.R. This afternoon's game is against the Cleveland Cavaliers. For those of you who regularly follow my blog, you may recall the disaster that was the Christmas Day game against the Chicago Bulls. Spoiler alert, this game was worse. Fair warning: this blog is bitter, but I'll be brief. This was probably the worst game I've ever been to, autographing-wise. I thought I saw this coming from the last game, but never did I imagine I'd walk away from a game with the same number of autographs I had walking in the door (0). When I arrived in the queue outside the door, it was 30 minutes early (early for me, as well), and it was already rows and columns deep! I hope this isn't how the Golden State game will be, but I have a sinking feeling it will be much like this, if not worse. Going in and finding a spot was a bit of a challenge. I went over to my new side but the prime spots were already taken and so were many of the ones on the sides. The sides were occupied by kids, so I had hope the players would at least sign for them and maybe sandwich me in between some of them. I found it sad that there were so many delusional fans who thought they had a realistic shot at getting LeBron James' autograph. You made a sign for him? Oh yeah, he will definitely stop to sign for you. Nope, sorry, let's be real. In fact, just watch some videos on YouTube, and you'll see how "often" he signs. On very rare instances, he will sign but they are usually items of little to no value. He knows what he's doing. After obtaining a sub-optimal spot, I looked on the court and the only guys out there that I could see were Timofey Mozgov and Tristan Thompson. I'll save you all the time and trouble, all the players that I saw signed a few autographs for the kids sitting courtside and the SSUF before running past everyone straight to the locker rooms. Most of the players attempted high fives as they ran past, but I didn't get any. Boo.
Richard Jefferson ran off the court and high fived fans on the way to the lockers, but I didn't even know he was out there to begin with. Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving, and J.R. Smith -- all the same story. LeBron James never came out. I'm sorry this recap wasn't very exciting. I don't have much to say and unfortunately, all of my experiences with the Cavs this round were the same. Hopefully the Warriors game is better, but I'm going to temper my expectations on that one. It's games like these where I should really just graph the hotel; I might have better luck there? Irving 0/1 Jefferson 0/1 Love 0/1 Mozgov 0/1 Smith 0/1 Thompson 0/1 The next game is the Warriors game on Saturday the 27th. If I get at least one autograph, it will be better than this one. I'd like to get Stephen Curry, but so would everyone else. Fingers crossed. Until next time, J.R. I'm starting a new series today. I'll be asking you, the autograph community, what your thoughts are on certain topics within our favorite hobby. There are no right or wrong answers, only wholesome debate and discussion. Be sure to keep it clean; this is a family-friendly blog.
The first topic in this series focuses on autograph signing habits in general. Do players get annoyed at fans who want autographs but don't come prepared or are lazy?
Through my personal observations, players tend to give better, bigger, and/or nicer signatures, occasionally with numbers or inscriptions, when they aren't signing a program. Same with unique photos. Nick Collison signed a neat one for me at the Sacramento Kings game earlier this season and even added his number. I remember looking over at the kid next to me, who was holding out a program, and he didn't get a number on his autograph. This brings me to my big issue of the day: I've seen lots of kids presenting to a player the free program they got at the door. Players have to be tired of seeing and signing these all the time, right? Usually they end up quickly scribbling something that looks like their name, knowing full well these kids aren't going to take care of this newly-minted piece of collectible memorabilia, or that the moms will inevitably throw it out well before the kid hits puberty. Kids, if you love basketball, why not bring some cards for the players to sign? I don't buy packs anymore, but I'm sure you can get a few of those for Christmas or a birthday. Let me know what you think! Post a reply in the comments section below, or click here to contact us privately! J.R. |
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